Do you? I guess most of us have, at some point or another, taken out a needle and thread and sewed on a button that came off in the wash or whatever. But we really don’t have to do this! Our Janome sewing machines can do it for us. Some models have a specific button sewing stitch included in the many stitches on the machine. Some do not……but you can still sew a button on by machine – see below for instructions.

Look at the stitch chart on your Janome machine: Does it have a stitch that looks like stitch #12 in the pic below? Yes? Then you have the special button sewing stitch I am referring to!

Select this button sewing stitch.

If you do not have this stitch program, then select the zig-zag stitch, reduce the stitch length to 1 or below and adjust the stitch width so that it is going to zig-zag from one hole to the other hole on the button without striking the button.

Does your button have 4 holes? No worries, just do the following steps twice: for 2 holes & repeat for the other 2 holes. It’s your choice as to whether you do parallel bars or a criss-cross.

What if my button has a shank or is some other fancy button without holes? Then you will need to go look for that needle and thread.

Drop the feed dogs on your machine if this is possible. It is a feature with most of our Janome machines. If you are not a quilter or don’t do much darning/mending, you might need to open up your instruction manual to figure out where the switch or lever is on your particular Janome machine to drop the feed dogs. Why do you need to do this? Well, when you are sewing the button in place you don’t want it moving and it will if the feed dogs are up! That could result in a broken needle or button or both so this step is important.

This foot is available for 5mm, 7mm and 9mm Janome machine models – so there are 3 different part #’s to choose from.

Please note that it attaches to the ankle in 2 spots: behind the ankle as well as in front. This is very similar to the way the applique foot attaches to the foot holder/ankle.

The blue rubber part of the foot is designed well: it holds the button in place once you have lowered the presser foot on top of the button.

Select the button sewing stitch program or zig -zag as mentioned in steps 1 or 3 above.

Position the needle, button and foot so that the needle goes into the one hole on the button & then will swing to the other hole after a few anchoring stitches. I prefer to hand crank this part just to be very sure that I have lined everything up correctly as I really am not keen to break my needle, button or both!

When you are confident all is good, press the stop/start button or foot control and continue until the sewing locks/ties off and stops. Press the thread snips button and the threads will be cut for you. Yes, it is all fully automatic if you have this button sewing program and thread snips button!

If you do not have these features, your local Janome or Elna dealer will be happy to show you another Janome or Elna machine which does have these great features! It really is all about having the tools and “bells & whistles” needed to make our sewing that much easier.

If you are using a zig-zag stitch, you will need to stop sewing once you have sewed enough stitches/thread to hold the button in place through many washes. Then change the width of the zig-zag stitch to zero which means that the needle will swing back to the first hole. Sew a couple of stitches to lock & then cut the threads.

Now that looks real quick & easy, does it not? See your local Janome or Elna dealer today to obtain a button sewing foot for your Janome machine.

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About lizafrica

I am the National Education Manager for Janome & Elna Canada (including Artistic Creative products) and I LOVE to sew! I have been employed full time in the sewing and quilting industry for almost 30 years so I bring a wealth of sewing knowledge & expertise to this blog. I enjoy all forms of sewing from quilting to sewing garments to machine embroidery and software. Pretty much everything in my life is seen through the eyes of a passionate sewer! I am constantly on the look out for fun, innovative and inspiring ideas to share with you all on this blog.
I also love to read, knit , travel and spend time with my family and friends.

Thanks for this post. How did you know that I just used this foot and sewed 5 – 4 hole buttons on Jim’s new panama top, that I didn’t quite have time to do for Christmas. I love this foot and so many others that Janome has provided with my sewing machines.